⚡ December 11, 2017
A Merry Martha 🎄
I’ve begun to get pretty busy in the background on Christmas stuff, some of it Top Secret, and some of it less so. Bill once described me as a duck gliding in the water, looking peaceful, with feet flapping like crazy below the sightline. Working on background – organizing and reorganizing in preparation for the chaos of creation – always takes place outside the sightline when there’s a holiday afoot. They’ll only see your caftan and never the bruises.*
And by bruises, I mean from moving furniture, chopping big hard sweet potatoes, and lugging groceries. You know: the holidays. Because I was raised by a violent parent, I would never hint that such violence followed me into adult life. I have always moved big pieces of furniture by pushing with my whole body … thus, bruises.
The background work is coming along, and that’s where Martha comes into this piece. I’m currently working on the all-new and improved and wonderful Perforated Lines Index. It’s going to solve many problems for me and create some fun for you in the future. And since building a complete index of all of Perforated Lines from 1999 until now is a daunting task, I’m starting with the same day, but different year for today. And, as it just so happens, back almost twenty years ago I was deep into Christmas prep of the more desperate sort. And, I was a whole lot snarkier than I am today, but I was speaking of the old Martha, before prison.
I thoroughly respect her for actually going to prison – every citizen’s nightmare. But most of all, I respect her for the poncho she wore when she was freed in the dark of night. I believe a prison friend made it for her, or helped, and she looked great in it. She wore her powerful ability to change her surrounding for the better right there on her shoulders, and it’s all been uphill since. May we all reach down deep and find strength upon strength, like Martha. 🐔
☞ See also: Another Christmas. 🎄